Sweet beginnings
by daisyscrapper
Summary: With the prospect of obtaining a fully charged ZPM, Jennifer and SGA leaders must convince a village that she never intended to lead on the leader's son, who wants Jennifer for his own, and that she's already romantically linked to someone else.
1. Chapter 1

"Unbelievable."

Col. John Sheppard's mind was still whirling from the negotiation meeting he just walked out of. He knew the rest of the team on Atlantis were going to be disappointed. They came incredible close to acquiring two fully charged ZPM.

But the price was impossible.

Ronon slammed the door and paced ahead of Sheppard. "Let's get out of here."

They made good time back to the gate and met Major Lorne's team there.

"Well?" Lorne approached, wiping his forehead and pulling off his sunglasses for moment. The planet they were currently on was sweltering hot. "Did you come to an agreement with the leaders?"

"Dial the gate, major. I'd rather not get into it right now."

Lorne nodded and began dialing. Turning back to Sheppard and Ronon after locking the last symbol, he observed that both men looked frustrated. Ronon especially looked angry and had a slight gash on his forehead. Something went down.

Major Lorne's team and both men stepped through the open worm hole and reached back to Atlantis within seconds. Sheppard looked up at the control room and shook his head at Woolsey. Pointing at the briefing room, he opened a private channel to the commander. "Meet us in five, sir. You're going to want to hear this right away."

Woolsey nodded and began his way to meet the men.

"Paging Dr. Keller to the briefing room." Woolsey, observing the blood on Ronon, quickly hailed the CMO to the room as well.

"On my way, sir." Keller's voice came through the transmission.

Meanwhile, Sheppard and Ronon slumped into their chairs when they reached the room. "This is going to be an interesting briefing." Sheppard muttered to Ronon.

Ronon just grunted. Unloading his pack and setting his gun on the floor, he grabbed the pitcher of water a crew member brought into the room, quickly poured it into a glass, and gulped it down.

"Seriously, do you ever not get into a fight?" Dr. Keller quickly walked in with a portable medical kit. Ronon paused to look at her and then resumed filling up his glass another time.

Wiping his mouth, he turned to her, sitting down as she perched on the table above him. "You're not one to talk, doc. We can't take you off world without some sort of catastrophe happening."

Dr. Keller snorted. He had a point.

Commander Woolsey quickly walked into the room, shutting the doors. "Sheppard, what on earth happened? We thought this would be a simple trade." John's eyes rolled back. "I'm assuming they turned down our offer for medical supplies and training from Atlantis?"

"Yeah, you could say that." Sheppard began, leaning forward, shoulders slumped forward. Slamming his fist down, he ran his hands through his sweaty hair. "They brushed it aside like it was absolutely worthless to them."

Keller paused from wiping the blood away from Ronon's forehead. "What?" Turning to Sheppard, she shook her head. "Tereck hung on every word I said while I was there with my team. He soaked up everything we said and couldn't get enough of looking through our research, our medicines... that doesn't make sense." Remembering herself, she stopped. Turning to Woolsey, she quickly spoke. "Sorry, sir, for the interruption. I'm almost done here."

Sheppard shook his head. "That's the thing, doc." He gave her a slanted look. "I think you're going to want to stay to hear all of this."

Confused, Keller closed her kit and sank down in the chair next to Ronon. Staying silent, she looked back at Sheppard across the table.

"So what do they want?" Woolsey asked, impatient.

Ronon glared at Sheppard. "Let's just say they want above and beyond medical training."

Sheppard nodded. "Sir... doc. Well, they want Keller."

Keller's jaw dropped. "What?" She squeaked out. "Define want me."

Sheppard smiled sarcastically for the first time in the meeting. "As in, Tereck specifically requested for you."

"As in, move there permanently?" Woolsey asked

Nodding his head, Sheppard continued. "Oh, and there's more. It seems the village doctor, who is also the son of the leader if you remember correctly, took a special shine to our doctor."

Grunting, Ronon nodded. "Tereck wants to propose a trade. Doctor Keller's marriage to him for a ZPM."

Jumping out of her seat, Keller backed up. "No. This is a joke." Whirling on Sheppard, she pointed. "You. You have a camera going and all of you are in on it." Not looking convinced herself, she hopefully turned to Ronon.

Ronon looked at her directly for the first time and held her gaze. He shook his head. "How can you not know that a man is interested in you? He didn't say anything at all suspicious while you were with him that week?"

Scrunching up her face, she sat back down. "No, not at all. He just seemed really interested in what I had to say." Running back through her mind trying to think of something, she look helplessly at the men. "All right, all right, I'm the first to admit I have little to no experience when it comes to men."

"Now that I think about it, you're right." Sheppard stared.

Glaring, Keller shot a look at him. "Gee, thanks, colonel."

"No," Sheppard said. "I know this isn't that important but it's relevant to the situation." Glancing back at Woolsey, who was getting even more agitated, he held up his hand. "Just give me minute to back up... Ronon and I were talking on the planet on our way in about the new recruits. It seems they at least half of them have a crush on our doc here."

"Give me a break." Keller rolled her eyes. "There's no possible way. Teyla, maybe. But not me."

"It's true." Ronon looked up. "They purposely chose to spar with me over Lorne because they know I'll eventually get a shot in and it sends them to the infirmary."

Keller looked up, shocked.

"Here's the kicker." Sheppard said, getting into this and enjoying Dr. Keller's reaction. "They are quite organized about it. The men actually found out from a nurse when you'll be on shift, so they only do that when they know you're there. It's actually quite brilliant."

"Yeah, brilliant." Ronon muttered, his anger from hearing this for the second time today resumed. "Doesn't Earth check for men like that?"

Sheppard laughed, relaxing a little. "You mean the men from Sateda don't have the testosterone the men from Earth have?"

Ronon just glared. "We don't go around acting like fools about it."

Woolsey made a note to give the men a briefing about professionalism on Atlantis. "Sheppard, your point?"

Sheppard wiped the smirk off his face. "My point is that our doctor... and I'm sorry if this makes you uncomfortable doc," he glanced back at Keller, who was blushing furiously "doesn't realize how men react around her. She's brilliant, charming, and beautiful all in one package. She defines girl next door and doesn't play girl tricks."

Ronon looked at his friend, wondering if Sheppard secretly admired the doctor as well as he did. No, Sheppard has his eyes on someone else on Atlantis. Anyways, he was first to admit he himself had a few moments of attraction to the young woman sitting apprehensively next to him. But they ended up not acting on it, and he gradually got used to the feeling of just being friends with her.

"Girl tricks?" Ronon questioned.

"You know," Sheppard said. "Girl tricks. They travel in packs so you can't get them alone unless you brave the crowd." He began to get on a roll. "Makeup, perfume, you name it. Then you get the psycho ones that giggle that high pitched annoying laugh, follow you wherever you go, act all fake... just ask Ronon. There was a group of nurses last week, Keller, that-"

"All right, Sheppard, get to the point." Woolsey closed his eyes, finding out more than he wanted to know about his team in those two minutes then ever.

"And that point leads to Tereck. She had no idea he had the hots for her."

Pushing the thought away, he studied Keller's reaction. She was clearly dumbfounded. And incredibly embarrassed.

"I'm sorry, this is all hard to take." Refusing to make eye contact. Then she got nervous. "I didn't realize Tereck mistook my lecturing on medical procedures as flirting." She began to babble. "Heck, I've only had one serious relationship my entire life, and I got dumped for a Bambi chick that waited tables at a hole in the wall bar. I've never had time for men." Then she caught herself again. Taking a deep breath, she glared at Sheppard. "I'm officially asking for permission to never leave Atlantis again, unless it's for Earth. No good comes out of me going through that gate."

Woolsey tried to bring the conversation back to the present problem. "So what's our next course of action, major. Can we try a renegotiation?"

Sheppard shrugged. "Possibly." Nodding to Ronon, he leaned forward. "After they told us the offer, there was a slight moment of chaos. I couldn't help myself and laughed for a brief second, which they interrupted as insulting behavior. I tried to make up for it saying Keller was taken and it was impossible on our end. That defused the men but made Tereck angry." He turned to Keller. "He's ticked you didn't come out and tell him you were off the market."

Jennifer rolled her eyes. "And this is why I stay clear of the male gender."

"However," Sheppard continued. "Aside from some hostile feelings from Tereck, I think the villagers are still interested in what we can give them in medical advances. They could use the vaccines, the training, some supplies. My suggestion would be to bring Keller back and reopen negotiations. She would be critical in giving them suggestions we can fill for them where she saw the need from her previous visit."

"Great." Keller spoke. "You mean I have to go back and face him?"

Woolsey made more notes on his pad. "Yes, I'm afraid so. Sheppard, you have my go on the mission. We'll let things settle for a few hours and then send Teyla to smooth some of the ruffled feathers. It sounds like you had things pretty much sorted when you left. She has traded with them before joining Atlantis. Then, if they agree, we'll go back and figure out a way to get the ZPM."

Sheppard gave a sideways glance at Ronon. "It's not going to be that easy, sir. You see, when I told the men that Keller here was romantically involved with someone on Atlantis, Tereck's blood pressure went through the roof." Looking back at Keller, he shrugged. "You're better off without him, doc. He has what you would be describe as anger management issues." He turned back to Woolsey. "Anyways, Tereck demanded to know who Keller's 'mate' was. I don't think I could have kept a straight face and offered up myself as the man in question... no offense, doc."

Keller smiled. "It wouldn't have worked out anyways, Sheppard. You detest contemporary country music and I won't give up Tim and Faith for you."

"Who's Tim?" Ronon asked, confused.

"People, let's stay on track here." Woolsey sighed.

Sheppard continued. "This is where things spun out of control. Tereck said he didn't believe us, getting Chewey here ticked, a brawl rivaling any bar fight I've had the pleasure witnessing broke out, and then we were forcefully removed from the village, where we met up with Lorne's team and dialed back."

"And this debriefing gets more interesting as the minutes tick on." Woolsey commented. "OK, folks. Let's stick with the plan. Dr. Keller, if Teyla is able to open lines of communication with the town again, you're going. Ronon will escort you, serving as both your romantic interest as well as filling in as your bodyguard. Ronon, she does not leave your sight at all. I don't trust these people, especially this Tereck. Never underestimate the ability of a scorned male after rejection."

"Wait. Just a minute." Keller rubbed her head and began to tug on her hair. "In about a day or two, you expect me to go back and play the part of Ronon's girlfriend? Does anyone see the hole in this plan?" She rolled her eyes. "OK, if Ronon was really my love interest, why wouldn't he have spoken up right there? If you send me back with him, they're going to ask questions. It's not going to work."

Ronon spoke for the first time in minutes. "She right." He got up. "It's going to have to be someone else."

Sheppard looked at Jennifer intensely. "Keller, you know how much we need this. I wouldn't ask you to play along with this game if it didn't mean so much to the expedition and the people here. A fully charged ZPM means better weapons, more technology uncovered-"

"I know, I know," Jennifer waved carelessly. "I'm 100% OK with this. But just to warn you... I'm not a good actress. You have on your hands a doctor who skipped three grades in high school, graduated with a bachelors when most kids were just leaving high school, and then was one of the earliest graduates from medical school in the history on our planet." She stopped and took a breath. "I'm not saying this like Rodney who brags all the time. I'm saying this because I'm socially ignorant when it comes down to certain things. Like men. Dating. Girl stuff."

Thoroughly embarrassed, she finally stopped staring at the table and looked up at Woolsey and Sheppard. "Tell me what to do and I'll get it my best shot. Just don't expect a Julia Roberts star emerging from Atlantis."

Silence after her tirade stretched for minutes. They all sat and thought about a possible plan. Finally, John looked up and spoke in a soft voice.

"Close your eyes," he said, waiting for Jennifer to comply. "I want you to think of a man in this city, military preferably, who you are comfortable around. It needs to be someone you know at least comfortably and someone who you trust completely," he continued. "Who here would you be comfortable with guarding you, possibly around the clock for a few days? But just as importantly, and I'm sorry if this is getting personal here... it needs to be someone you are attracted to."

Her eyes flew open, shocked Sheppard would even say that but at the same time understanding.

"Doc," he warned, leaning forward. "We're all grown ups here. No one will breathe a word about this beyond that door." He waited. "Close your eyes and think."

Her eyes narrowed, hating that he was putting her into this position, hating that her face was redder than a lobster, and most of all... hating that she had to do it or else an entire city would lose a shot of obtaining something it desperately needed. "I don't have to think anymore, colonel," she said, using his formal title as a way to show how irritated she was with him.

And then she said the man's name, causing both Sheppard and Ronon to both look at each other with matching surprised looks. Jennifer, not amused at all, glared at them both. Turning to Woolsey, she looked up and said "so what's the plan?"

* * *

_Can you guess who it is? Someone put an idea in my head a few days ago and I of course had to act on it. I usually publish the entire story at a time, but this is just going to be chapter by chapter. I don't plan on writing anything too long, but we'll see! Thanks for reading!_


	2. Chapter 2

_To those who guess Rodney... nope! And no, no more Ronon stories from me. I'm growing fonder pairing her with a few other guys now. Read on for the pairing ;)_

_

* * *

  
_

"Seriously?" Sheppard said. "Wow." Shaking his head, looking back to Keller to see if she was kidding, he saw she was not. "OK. Well, that's unexpected."

Although Woolsey did genuinely care for his team, he didn't have the close relationships that both of Atlantis' previous leaders had with those they were in command of. He had no interest in who the doctor was attracted to and cared more about getting that ZPM.

"Doctor, you can go. Let us talk over some possible plans and then call you back in later," Woolsey said, dismissing the young woman.

Nodding, she got up and walked out.

Woolsey saw that Sheppard was still mulling around the name that Keller had identified. "Sheppard, last time I checked, this city does not appear on a soap opera on CBS back home. Therefore, let's not treat it as such. Jennifer gave you a name, and in my opinion, he qualifies for this mission."

Shaking his head, Sheppard tried to not grin. "Sorry, sir. I just thought I knew my team better. If that didn't just come out of left field..." Taking a deep breath, he looked over at Ronon. "OK, I agree with Woolsey, he's solid."

Ronon nodded in agreement.

"I mean," John leaned forward, weighing the situation, "he's actually perfect for the situation. He'll handle it with maturity, guard her with his life, take this in all seriousness... the man has been one of the most loyal officers I've ever worked with. His record is pretty much blemish free, which is a little boring if you ask me..." he chuckled. "I just never paired him up with the doc, that's all."

Woolsey rubbed his forehead. "What I need to know, John, is if he can play the part?"

"If he's given an order," Sheppard said. "He'll do it."

"OK, then let's call him in."

* * *

Minutes later, Major Evan Lorne entered the conference room. He nodded at Ronon and Woolsey, greeted Sheppard with a "sir," and stood until Sheppard instructed him to sit down.

Trying to figure out how to word this all without embarrassing Keller, he looked at Woolsey for help. Woolsey, understanding, looked at the major.

"Major Lorne, thank you for meeting with us," Woolsey smiled. "It seems like we're going to need your help in a unusual matter."

Evan's expression didn't change. "What can I do, sir?"

Woolsey, now unsure how to go about this himself, looked back at Sheppard. John sighed.

"OK, looks like I'm it," Sheppard leaned back in his chair. "It's like this, Lorne. Ronon and I just got back from a mission, and-"

Ronon finally rocked back in his chair, grunting in frustration. "This is taking too long. I'm starving," he growled. "Look, we may be able to get a ZPM. Bad news is that the leader's son has a thing for Dr. Keller. He proposed a trade. Her for the ZPM. As in, her hand in marriage. Obviously that's not going to happen. So now, we have to put other offers on the table and not offend them, which is pretty easy to do. The bad part is that we said that Keller's already taken. So Teyla's going to smooth things over and if we go back, doc's going to need a man to pretend to be with. You win." He raised an eyebrow at Sheppard. "Can I go eat now?"

Both Woolsey and Sheppard looked at him in surprise. It was the most words the Satedan had ever spoke at one time. Sheppard nodded, earning a grateful grin from Ronon. He picked up his gun, slapped both Sheppard and Lorne on the back, and waved at Woolsey as he shut the door.

"So now we know how to get him to talk," Woolsey muttered. "Just threaten to starve him to death. Anyways, Ronon summed that up quite nicely. We would like to have you, major, escort Jennifer back to this village posing as her..." he looked up at Sheppard.

"Uhh... man? Boyfriend? Betrothed? Lover?" Sheppard listed, growing more and more creative with the titles. "Take your pick."

Major Lorne continued to just keep the same expression on his face. Finally, he broke his silence. "Anyone talk to the doc about this? I mean, is she going to go for this plan?"

Sheppard coughed. "Ah, yeah. She just left. And yes, she knows it's our best shot at a fully charged ZPM that we may ever have."

"And she knows," Lorne said, "she would be paired up with me?"

Treading carefully out of consideration for Keller, he confirmed the question with a nod.

"Sirs, if I may just ask one more question," Lorne said, sitting forward. "Why me? Why not Sheppard or Ronon? She's been on more missions with them than myself."

Evan certainly wasn't making it easy to keeping this to basic facts. Sheppard quickly went over what had happened on the planet when they were confronted by Tereck and explained how it would be impossible for either of them to pose themselves.

Woolsey, looking at his watch, sighed. "Sorry, gentlemen, but I have another meeting in about three minutes. We'll firm up these plans when Teyla returns back."

Both men waved at the commander but neither made any moves to depart. The door shut behind him.

"Look, Lorne," Sheppard said. "I couldn't have picked anyone better for this mission but you. She'll need someone she can trust, someone who can guard her as good as Ronon or I, and who will take this seriously. If she got paired up with one of those idiots that just got beamed down from the _Daedalus, _we could have a mess on our hands. You're the only one we can trust."

"I understand, sir. I just didn't expect to be called down here and be told I'd be going on a mission like this."

Sheppard chuckled. "You can say that again. It's been surprising to all of us, believe me." He muddled through his brain in order to tactfully bring up the next course of action. "Now, Lorne... " he paused, starting again. "Evan. We've gotten pretty close on missions and during off time. You still haven't completely relaxed around me, even those most of our time here we were the same rank. The fact is, Evan. I need to know something. And it doesn't get repeated, I promise." He waited until Evan nodded. "Can you put on a believing show for this village? Because I'm not sending my CMO into a situation that we don't have a solid plan for."

"What are you asking, Sheppard?"

"I'm asking, Ev," he lowered his voice. "If you are in any way attracted to her? And I'm asking this because it would definitely help in his type of mission."

Silence greeted his question. While they had revealed a few personal details about each other on missions. Heck, what else were you to do on missions where you're walking for miles? But he didn't expect this.

Evan decided to play it safe.

"If you're asking," he replied, "if I think that Dr. Keller is attractive, than yes, I do. Any male would tell you the same thing on base." The last comment he gave grated on his own nerves. He had heard guys in the gym talking about her, trying to get injured just to visit in infirmary. It annoyed him, but he didn't feel it was his place to get involved.

Sheppard cocked his head sideways. "Nice evasive maneuver, major. I'll let that slide, but know this. You may only have a few days to make this work. So spent it getting to know one another and getting comfortable with each other."

* * *

Evan closed the door to his room, kicked off his shoes, and fell face forward on the bed. _This is not happening, _he thought. _How in the world am I going to get through this one?_

Rolling onto his back, he stared at the ceiling. He still didn't understand why he was picked to do this mission with Jennifer. He couldn't see Sheppard or Woolsey almost instantly narrowing down the wide selection of men on base to him. Sheppard had just gotten back from the mission and they hadn't had that much time to talk this over.

Irregardless, he never failed to carry out an order. He wouldn't let down Sheppard, along with the rest of Atlantis, because he had a thing for the doctor.

It began just after she arrived on base. He had a few trips to the infirmary. Even though she rarely treated him herself, he always felt his eyes trailing her movements. He watched her expertly treat the injured, console the grieving, and often work for hours without remembering the time she punched in or if she ate. Twice, he had sent a sandwich into the infirmary with a nurse, warning her not to tell who sent it, just to make sure she ate.

On missions, they would talk in passing. She generally was flanked by Ronon and Sheppard. He didn't blame them. She tended to be a handful on missions, although none of it was her own doing. She had a knack for attracting problems. He also knew for a fact that Ronon grew interested in her for awhile. Rumors about them being locked up together during the fake quarantine spread around like rapid fire for days. But he had it on good authority that she ended up turning him down, saying she was interested in someone else.

Lorne didn't know what to think about that. In one way, he was glad the doctor turned down the one man on base that had every woman daydreaming about; on the other hand, it made him wonder who she was referring to. To his knowledge, she had not been on any dates since arriving and had not been linked to anyone.

Closing his eyes, he tried to relax for a few more minutes before going forward with the impending meeting he had planned for them after her shift.

* * *

She kept herself busy in the infirmary, willing herself not to think about the meeting with Sheppard and Woolsey. Face reddening again, she turned so no one could see. At least she was getting a lot done that had been put off for weeks, due to emergencies and irregular scheduling.

Since her back was turned, she didn't see Evan coming until he was almost next to her. Fumbling with the medical instruments she had just been counting for inventory, she dropped several of them on the floor, causing a few nurses to glance over in her direction. They watched their CMO redden and bend down to pick them up.

Lorne bent down as well, finding one piece that had rolled under a gurney. Neither of them talked, almost as if they both knew things were awkward and didn't know where to begin. Evan began to stand quickly but caught a table on a sharp edge, nailing himself on the back of his shoulder. Wincing, he kept standing, knocking over the table along with the instruments Jennifer just had placed on it.

A few nurses scurried over, picking up the instruments. Evan apologized, bending to help them. One of them noticed Evan's shirt torn.

"You're bleeding," she said, motioning for Jennifer to check it out.

Jen felt guilty but was happy to have a distraction that she could deal with. Transforming herself into doctor mode, she led Evan to the gurney and took a look at the cut through his torn shirt.

"I can't tell how deep it is," she said, leaning closer to him to inspect it. "Can you take your arm out of the sleeve so I can check?"

He nodded, unbuttoning his shirt and just shrugging out of it completely. She noticed a few more nurses glancing in their direction; half looking to see what was going on between the two and the others checking out the major sitting in only a black military issued tank top.

She tried to only focus on the cut. But her eyes wandered to his arms. Because he was resting his weight on his clenched fists on the table, the muscles were more pronounced. Her mouth went dry.

_Get it together, Keller,_ she said to herself.

"It won't need stitches, major," she said. "But let me clean and cover it at least."

Lorne spoke, making her jump. "Good," he said. "That's all I need for my men to hear I had to be stitched up over bumping into a table."

He sat patiently, unlike Ronon, while she worked. Finally, he took a breath.

"I met with Sheppard and Woolsey an hour ago," he began, trying to sound like a competent Air Force major. "They briefed me about the mission we'll probably be taking soon. I'd like to meet with you and go over some things."

Jennifer paused, wondering how he could make the mission and what it involved so business-like.

"Sure," she said, turning to put away the bandages. "I'm done here for the day and was about to grab dinner. Would that be a good time?"

He nodded. "Perfect."

They walked together, grabbed food, and sat at a nearby table.

"I pulled these from Woosey's office," Lorne said, pulling two folders out of his bag she hadn't noticed he had been carrying. "I thought if we're supposed to get together, we should probably know as much as possible about each other."

Surprised he had thought about getting their personal files, she opened his. "Sorry," she said, feeling nosy. "I'm so used reading everyone's medical file that I just automatically jump in. You mind if I take a look at it? You can look at mine and we can ask any questions."

Lorne agreed, not giving away that he had already read hers. Twice. Irregardless, he began to read again.

She began to nibble at the food plate in front of her. It was evident that she was absorbed in what she was reading. He pretended to read while secretly watching her study his file. He ducked his head when she started to murmur.

"Hobbies include painting? Really?" She popped her head up. "I hadn't heard about that. What do you paint?"

He shrugged. "Landscapes, mostly. I've painted the towers of Atlantis a few times, pulled a few digital photos of a few planets we visited and painted those. It's just a hobby, a way to relax. My mom was an art teacher and always encouraged us to do something creative with our time."

Impressed, she smiled. "So do you show any of your work?"

Lorne's face broke out in a grin, surprising her. She rarely saw him relaxed. He was always so disciplined, so serious on missions. But it was what drew her to him. Jennifer liked the strong determination, the protectiveness towards his team, that he possessed.

"A few people here have seen them," he said. "It's embarrassing, especially when one of my team members come across me early in the morning."

She laughed, going back to her reading.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, both reading and eating.

That's how Sheppard found them. Curious, he walked over with his tray. Once he saw what they were doing, he rolled his eyes. Sitting down next to Evan, he waited until one of them noticed he was there. Keller was off in her own little studious world, while he could tell Evan was going back and forth between reading the file and sneaking glances at the doctor. He finally noticed Sheppard.

"Sir," he said. "Didn't even see you sit down."

"No, you didn't," Sheppard drawled, wondering what he was going to do with the pair. "Interesting reading, doc?"

Jennifer jumped, startled at the interruption and blushed when she saw Sheppard. "Colonel. Didn't see you there."

"Yeah, the major just said the same thing," he began shoveling food in, hungry from the long meetings he had with the pair sitting in front of him and later on another with Woolsey. "So," he said. "How's the happy couple doing today?"

Not surprisingly, both Lorne and Keller looked a little red in the face.

"Ah, well, we're trying to get some facts down by reading each other's files. I thought it would be a good way to start," Lorne said.

Sheppard shrugged. "Guess that's one way. I mean, they could interrogate you and ask what your GPA's were in high school," he said, laughing. Then he stopped. "On the other hand, you never know. Doc here does have a nasty unlucky streak."

"Hey," she said, relaxing. Picking up a grape from her tray, she flicked it at him in the face. "I have medical records to prove you're not so lucky yourself."

Evan was surprised to see the transformation in her. Around him, she seemed a little wary, hesitant. She was obviously more relaxed around John, almost making him wonder if he was the man she was supposedly interested in.

"Since you guys are both off tomorrow, I have another way of getting to know each other. And it works out perfectly because we need another female," Sheppard said, grinning at Jen.

Evan raised his eyebrows. "The game?"

Sheppard nodded. "Ever play basketball, Keller?"

Laughing, she shook her head. "Absolutely not. And you want me to play in a game?"

He got up to leave, sending a look at Evan. "Gym's free right now. Go bring the doc and teach her the basics. Game is at 0900 tomorrow, sharp."

Keller's eyes trailed after John, her smile fading. "And the day just keeps getting better and better."


	3. Chapter 3

They met in the gym after changing out of their uniforms. Lorne arrived first, pulling out the rack of basketballs. They had just gotten the hoops and turned one of the larger meeting rooms into a full basketball court.

He changed into a loose tank top and black basketball shorts. Sitting down to stretch, he heard the doors open and Jennifer walked in, hesitantly. He cursed himself, eyes taking in her appearance. She had to change into a pair of short cotton shorts, showing off her long slender legs, and a tailored t-shirt. She looked like a high school cheerleader getting ready to go to practice. Groaning, he tried his best to remain professional.

"Better stretch before we get started, doc," he called over to her. She spotted him in the corner and walked over, sitting several feet away and stretching.

"You have your work cut out for you, major," she said conversationally.

His eyes raised. "You mean now or when we go on our mission?" He laughed, showing her he was kidding.

Rolling her eyes, she tried not to smile. Looking around, she felt uncomfortable with her surroundings. Gym had never been her one of the highlights of her day in school. In fact, the teachers let her skip it most through high school and instead she took aerobics courses at night to make up for it. It helped her speed through high school, along with taking her foreign languages in the summer.

"Ready?" he asked her, holding out a hand to help her up. She took it, enjoying the feel of his warm hand and the firm grip he had. He let go immediately as she stood and strode off to grab a basketball, leaving her disappointed.

He explained the basics, taught her how to dribble and pass. He figured she wouldn't do much dribbling and walking, and mostly would just pass. For fun, he taught her how to steal and she began to get very competitive, trying to quickly grab the ball away from Evan. Laughing, he taught her how to play one-on-one, letting her dribble clumsily around him and try to shoot. When it was his turn, he couldn't help showing off and dribbling around her and ending with a lay-up. Jennifer liked the change in him. He seemed relaxed and more carefree, compared to how she usually saw him on a day to day basis.

Sheppard came into the room and watched them. Neither Jennifer or Evan noticed the colonel leaning against the door. _Better, _he thought. _They're starting to get a little more comfortable around each other._ But he had something else on his agenda. Something he knew Evan wouldn't appreciate immediately but maybe later on.

He waited until they were about to wrap up. Evan began gathering the discarded balls. Sheppard quickly grabbed one from the corner.

"So doc," he said, surprising them both. "Evan may have turned you into a pretty good player, but can you shoot?"

He passed her the ball, inwardly wincing when she almost didn't catch it. Flashes of the ball slamming into her face flashed before his eyes. He noticed Lorne glaring at him because of it.

"Sorry, should have warned you," he waited until she walked over to the net. "So show me while Lorne cleans up."

Jennifer awkwardly held the ball and jumped, missing the rim by several feet. Laughing at herself, she grinned at Sheppard. "You sure you want me on your team? Or are you going to trade me to the Marines?"

He ran to get the ball, motioning her to come stand by him. "Lorne should have showed you how to hold the ball before you shoot." He had her hold up both hands, showing her how to hold it against one hand and have the other guide the ball with her finger tips. He felt Lorne's eyes on him, watching them closely.

Trying to agitate the major even more, he walked behind her, guiding her closer to the net. She showed her how to bend her legs, then wrapped his arms around her from the back to hold her hands, showing her how to follow through on her shot.

Glancing over at Evan, who was trying his best not to look jealous, he inwardly smiled. _Oh yeah, _he thought. _Question answered. The major was whipped._

Jennifer kept practicing, until she finally made a basket. Shocked, she leaped up with her hands in the air, and Sheppard couldn't resist high fiving the young doctor.

Afterward, they walked out together, parting ways to their room. Sheppard deliberately told Keller he wanted to talk to her about something, dismissing Evan, and continued walking with her to her room. He didn't miss Lorne's look on his face, like he wanted to follow her. Instead, he backed off and went back to his room, telling them both he would see them in the morning.

"So doc," he began. "How's this all working out?"

She scrunched up her nose. "You mean, this whole spending time with Evan in order to make a passable attempt at getting this ZPM?" Jennifer muttered. "Fine. Just dandy."

He opened his mouth, choosing his words carefully. "And how long have you had a thing for my second in command?"

Shocked he would outright ask that, she stopped in the hallway. "None of your business, colonel."

"Yes, it is. Between the mission and my own lack of social life, it is interesting."

She snorted. Her mouth formed into an evil grin. She began walking again. "Well, then, how about we talk about you? And Teyla," she said, delighted when he turned his head quickly at her. "Don't pretend I haven't heard that rumor circulating the base. And back to me... despite what you think, the major does not feel the same way. So no, I'm also one without the social life, so how about you entertain me, Sheppard?"

It was his turn to send a hard look in her direction. "I don't know what you're talking about. And besides that, let's get back to you. How do you know Lorne doesn't feel the same way?"

"Oh, sure, right. I should just ask him," she answered back, sarcastically.

"Why not?"

She slapped him in the arm, shaking her head. "Don't be ridiculous. And anyways, none of this matters. Everything will be fine with the mission. And I feel safe with him. He's a good guy. No need to feel sorry for me."

Sheppard snorted, stopping at her room. "Until you see into a man's head, never assume they are a good guy. Speaking of which..." he looked down. "Do not wear shorts tomorrow. The men have a hard enough time concentrating when we add girls to the team. Short shorts will send them over the edge. But I'm sure," he said, lowering his voice as someone passed them, "the saintly major never noticed that."

She opened her door, resisting sticking out her tongue, and almost closed it in his face.

"Wait. One more thing. Woolsey thinks it would be best to say you both are married. We're working on getting you a ring."

"A ring?" she asked. "I didn't realize there's a Jared's jeweler in Pegasus."

"Funny, doc, funny," Sheppard grinned. "No, there's a few married civilians on Atlantis we may be able to borrow from."

She shook her head. "No worries. I have one."

Frowning, Sheppard leaned on the door. "What? How in the world do you-"

"It was my mom's. I wear it around my neck sometimes, but most of the time it stays in my quarters. It fits and should work."

"Ok, then," Sheppard said, glad he didn't have that to worry about. "See you in the morning."

Jennifer shut the door, then remembered he never answered her question about Teyla. Promising to bug him about that tomorrow, she stepped out of her shoes and dove into the covers, exhausted.

* * *

Keller descended the stairs from the hall to the gate room. It had been two days since the basketball game, and she still hurt. But incredibly, she had found herself having a good time. Evan even cheered from the other side of the key when she stole the ball from a shocked marine and passed it successfully on to Sheppard, who almost just stood there in amazement that she actually made a play. In the end, however, the marines had one, much to Sheppard's disappointment.

She glanced over by the gate and saw that Evan was already there, checking his pack.

"Keller," Sheppard began. Saying a quick prayer, he struggled to tactfully tell the doctor that he had no doubt in his mind something would happen on this mission. "I want you on Evan like glue. You are not to go anywhere without him at your side." Watching her nod and walk over to Evan, he saw a few people snickering in the control room, more than likely at Keller's track record for getting into trouble with the locals on planets.

"Major." Sheppard darted a glance at them and hissed. "Doctor. Relax. Both of you look guilty."

Evan tried to loosen up while Jennifer just closed her eyes, willing for this all to be over so she could retreat peacefully to her little corner in Atlantis. Glancing at her, a little surprised to see the ring on her left ring finger, he grabbed her hand and walked after the Ronon and Teyla through the gate.

Hopelessly glancing at Woolsey, Sheppard called out "If we're a millisecond late, send two teams through. And lots of amo. Grenades. The works. Send Cadman, too. This is Keller we're talking about." Walking through, he groaned at the first sight he had of the scene in front of him. Evan, his mild-tempered second in command and Tereck were yelling back and forth as Jennifer tried to place herself physically in the middle of them while Evan kept trying to keep her safely behind him. Immediately his gun went up, assessing the situation.


	4. Chapter 4

"Enough!" The doctor yelled, shocking both the locals and the Atlantians. "You," Keller yelled at Evan. "Calm down." Whirling on Tereck, "And you! We need to talk." Not asking anyone's permission, including Evan and Sheppard, Jennifer gestured over to the privacy of the trees and stomped over to them, not waiting for Tereck to follow.

Ronon growled and Evan began to follow her, but Sheppard followed his instinct. "Let's back off...let her deal with this. We can see her and she's not going anywhere."

Gun at his side, Evan was seething under the calm facade of his stone-set jawline. No one know the rage that was boiling under his exterior. Trying to pick up what they were saying, he watched her speak softly to the man. Tereck began to calm down and listened to what she was saying. They kept talking, several times gesturing loudly, until finally Jennifer put a hand on his arm in a friendly manner. A few minutes later, the two returned to the group.

Tereck's father, looking at Tereck, finally spoke. "Now that's settled, we will be escorting you to the village."

Evan fell beside Jennifer, making sure to keep his body in between hers and Tereck's.

"What was that all about?" He asked, speaking low enough for her to hear. "That could have backfired on you easily, Jennifer."

She caught the fact that he actually used her real name. Chalking it up to practicing for the part he had to play, she didn't think much of it.

"I figured he wouldn't try anything with four guns trained on him," she answered, holding on to his arm as they crossed a rocky area. "Plus I was ticked."

They heard Sheppard come up nonchalantly behind them. "What the heck happened before I got through the gate, kids?"

Lorne quickly explained that Tereck had immediately began calling Jennifer names, which Ronon translated for them. Evan left the part out where he almost snapped and lunged at the guy if it hadn't been for Jennifer stepping in between them.

Sheppard sighed. "It's going to be one of those missions, huh? Nothing like starting on the wrong foot." Walking ahead of them, he caught up with Teyla and Ronon.

The team walked to the village, not conversing much with the local villagers. The way Sheppard and Ronon left seemed fresh in their minds, for both sides.

When they arrived at the village, the team split up. Ronon and Teyla were brought to the tavern as representatives to talk about an alliance. Woolsey had instructed them what possible training, provisions, and ideas to exchange with the village that would hopefully persuade them to trade for a ZPM. Jennifer agreed to help the village healer with a few patients, sharing her knowledge of what she had learned so far of illnesses from the galaxy and any general remedies she could share with them.

Of course, she was flanked by both Lorne and Sheppard the entire time. They stood in the room, each on one side of her a few feet away, on alert for any trouble. A few hours into her work, she finally grew exasperated and looked at them.

"Can't you both go and do something? I mean, besides acting like I'm going to get attacked any second?" she complained.

Sheppard only raised his eyebrows. "Shall I list past missions we've had with you?"

Agreeing that the small building filled with mostly women and children was pretty safe, both men relaxed their stances a little and walked a little further away from where she was treating them.

"So, I've been thinking," Sheppard murmured to Evan, with a sucker in his mouth that he had stolen from Jennifer's stash that she kept for the kids. "Doc doesn't date much. Actually, not at all. Wonder why that is?"

Evan just starred ahead, not commenting. John didn't miss the man's muscle twitch in his jaw. _This wouldn't be too hard, _he thought to himself, amused.

"I mean, here you have a very attractive women, kinda shy, but incredibly smart," he went on, pretending he didn't notice Evan's growing irritation. "I guess I just didn't notice those things before. She kinda flies under the radar until you really get to know her."

Feeling the urge to shove his commanding officer against the wall, he took a deep breath through his nose. His mouth was firmly clamped together. Deciding to not respond, he glanced over at the door just in time to see a man holding a young boy in his arms rush through the entrance.

"Doctor, please," he called over. "My boy hasn't got better since we last saw you. Can you help him?"

She rushed over after finishing up with the last patient. Remembering the young boy, she quickly assessed his symptoms. She made her diagnosis quickly, motioning for Evan to grab her medical bag and bring it to her. She pulled out antibiotics and quickly gave him one. The next task was to get his fever down. Ignoring the audience she had surrounding her, she worked efficiently and within a few hours, had not only gotten the young boy's fever down, but also saw several more patients. When the last had left, she finally sank down in a chair.

Looking at both men, she closed her eyes. "Why am I more tired than you guys? You've been standing just as long."

"Probably because we've been standing doing nothing, whereas you've been running around all day," Evan answered, handing her a bottle of water from his pack.

Her shoulders and neck were stiff from the day's work. Drinking a long swig of water, she began rolling them.

"Here," John said, standing behind her and gently massaging her neck. "Now this is something I can handle. My ex always said I gave good massages." He worked his way from her neck to her shoulders. Although he was standing with his side facing his second-in-command, he felt Evan's glare directed at him. But still, the man refused to make a move. _Stubborn to the bone,_ John thought to himself. Wondering what it would take to see Evan finally emerge from the professional, dedicated air force major to a red blooded male, he stepped back.

"Better?" Sheppard asked, patting her on the back.

She groaned. "Much. Wish I could get that every day after my shift."

John just laughed, not even looking to see Evan's reaction to that.

* * *

The tavern owner showed them to their rooms above the first level after supper. Since there were only two available, he gave one to Evan and Jennifer and the other to the remaining three.

Evan lugged their bags into the room and set them down. It was large, containing a fireplace, enormous bed with a canopy covering it, and a rocking chair by the fire. There was a privacy screen set up in the corner of the room, he assumed, for added privacy during the day with the large windows.

Jennifer didn't notice much except for the bed, and more importantly, the fact that there was only one bed.

"Don't worry, I can sleep on the floor," Evan said, looking around.

She started to protest, but then she turned to the far wall. She squealed, making Evan almost jump and rush over to her. There, standing in the corner next to the screen, was an old fashioned large bath tub.

"I'm not leaving this planet," she said, just leaving her duffel bags where she stood. "They have a bath tub." She turned to him. "You don't understand. This," she gestured at the tub and bed, "is my version of heaven. Especially after a day like today." Running over to figure how the running water worked, she whirled to face him.

"You need to leave," she demanded. "I'll only be 30 minutes, tops. Promise."

Walking over to move her bags, he shook his head. "Absolutely not. You heard Sheppard. I'm not leaving you even for a second." Moving to the area where the tub stood, he moved the screen so it stood in front of the tub. "You'll have your privacy, but I'm staying."

Annoyed that she wouldn't be able to completely enjoy the peacefulness of the tub completely if he stayed in the room, she sighed. "Yeah, yeah. I swear, I have a few little missions go wrong and then everyone just assume sthere's always going to be trouble wherever I go. I can't even soak in a tub alone after a long day."

He smiled. "Stop your whining and go do your girl thing."

Dragging her bag over, she quickly changed out of her uniform and filled the tub. Shivering, she called out to Evan.

"Can we have a fire? I'm freezing."

Looking around for the supply of wood, he make short work of building a fire. Soon, the room was filled with warmth. He heard her sighing in the tub, occasionally hearing the sounds of water.

To her delight, she found a supply of soap scented like roses and a thick towel next to the tub. Jennifer leaned back and enjoyed the comfort of the tub she missed since coming to Atlantis. After soaking for awhile, she dunked her head bag and washed her hair with the travel shampoo she brought from home.

"Think you can smuggle this back to Atlantis for me?"

He snorted, making her smile. "Sure, doc, no problem. I'll just pack it in my toiletry bag."

Feeling refreshed, she stood and wrapped herself in a towel.

Jennifer cursed whoever had gone through her duffel bag. They had anticipated spending a few days there, so they packed changes of clothing and sleepwear. Someone, however, had gone through her stuff and exchanged the comfy flannel pants and sweatshirt she had packed to sleep in for a silky number that she was currently clutching in her hand. Nearly dropping the towel, she gasped. Turning to make sure Evan wasn't near the screen where her head was poking out searing in the bag, she held it up in front of her body with her back turned towards him. It looked knee-length, incredible revealing in the back, and dipped a little low in the front. It was a pale blue color, silky except for a little lace on the bodice.

_Lovely,_ she thought. _Someone is going to get murdered when I get back to Atlantis._

"What's wrong?" he asked, turning towards her. Evan could see she was trying to hide something from him from behind the screen. It looked suspiciously like something slinky a woman would wear to bed.

"Oh, just a little problem. Someone thought it would be funny to exchange my pj's for honeymoon wear. I guess word got out and they thought it would be funny. Not like I'm laughing or anything. You wouldn't happen to have extra sleep clothes?"

He shook his head. "I sleep in shorts. Hate the feeling of a shirt twisting around me."

_Even more lovely, _she thought. Now, she had visions of his bare chest in her mind.

Towel drying her hair, she combed through it and hoped it would dry soon. Since the tub was next to the fire, it had already dried half way.

She heard him pull an extra blanket he had found in a chest onto the floor, a pillow from the bed, and settle down. The faint sound of clothing hitting the floor told her he had taken off his shirt. Her face warm, she tugged the piece of silk over her head and shivered. It covered everything, but definitely wasn't made for warmth.

Spying a blanket nearby, she wrapped it around her body. Bare feet, she emerged from the screen with it wrapped around herself. The tub draining in the background and fire crackled in the corner. Sitting in front of the fire, trying to finger comb her hair to dry it, she heard him walk across the room.

Trying to focus on anything, Evan's thoughts kept coming back to the young woman across the room from him. And what she was wearing. He about had a heart attack when he caught a glimpse of the flimsy lingerie after her bath.

"I barred the door and moved the table in front of it," he said. "If you're done, I just want to wash up a bit."

She grinned up at him. "Can't resist a bath, either?"

Scrunching up his nose, he walked behind the screen, stripping and running the water quickly. "It's not a bath unless you stay in it for an hour," he explained, enjoying hearing her laughter. "It's a man tub if you just use it for a few minutes."

True to his word, he bathed fast, washing away the dirt he felt caked in his hair and body from the walk to the village. Luckily, he had brought travel soap and shampoo so he didn't have to come out smelling like a rose.

Within minutes, he came out wearing shorts with a towel around his shoulders. He built up the fire again, using all of the wood that had been left in the room.

Her mouth went dry at the sight. Ducking her head and blushing, she hid her face from his view. The man was toned, chiseled, and tan.

He was startled when he heard her soft voice from the corner of the room. "Can you turn around? I'm going to get into bed." Not able to speak, he turned on the floor so his back was to the bed and heard her walk quickly across the floor and hop onto the bed. He got up once she was under the covers to turn off the oil lamp. Before attempting to fall asleep, she leaned over the bed to look at his figure.

"Don't you need a blanket?" She asked quietly.

He turned and laid on his back, turning his head so he could see her faintly. "No, the fire is enough."

She buried into the covers, slightly chilled from the night air. Finding a comfortable spot, she curled into a ball in the middle of the bed. "Not to brag or anything, but I'm pretty sure this is the most amazing bed I've ever slept in."

Evan thought it best to make sure his brain cells were working until he responded. "I'm learning to be able to sleep on anything. Between Atlantis, going on missions with the SGC, and Iraq, I think I've slept just about everywhere. This floor is probably one of the better places, believe it or not."

_Nice, Ev,_ he thought. _Really smooth._

"Hmm... " she said softly, falling asleep. He smiled once he heard her even breathing. Turning himself, he willed himself to fall asleep.

* * *

A few hours later, Lorne woke up shivering. Orientating himself with where he was, he went to add more wood to the fire only to remember he had used it all the night before. He debated going downstairs and finding more, but he didn't want to leave her alone. He walked over to her to see if she was still sleeping, only to trip on the corner of the bed. Catching himself on the post, he heard Jennifer stir. So much for being quiet.

"Evan?" she whispered, sitting up and huddling in the middle of the large bed. "Where are you?"

"Over here," he answers a short distance away from her. "The fire went out. Are you cold?"

"Just a little. The covers are made of down or something." She remembered he had used the wood supply the night before.

Figuring he could last a few more hours, he laid back down, trying to wrap himself in the blanket under him. "We should be fine. Just go back to sleep."

Feeling the cold air on her skin from where she pulled off the covers when she sat up, she shivered. "It's freezing." She paused, thinking. "Evan, just come up here. The bed is huge and you'll be warmer."

_Absolutely no, _he thought. "I'll be OK."

Exasperated, she pulled off the covers. "Evan, we are both adults. It's not like we have to write about this in our mission reports. Come on,"

He didn't move. Letting out a frustrated sigh, she grabbed her pillow, threw it next to him on the floor, swung her legs down and laid down next to him. Almost immediately, her teeth started chattering.

Evan turned, rolling right into her. "What," he bit out. "Are you doing?" They were nose to nose, closer than he had ever been to her. Her scent was intoxicating. It was a blend of roses mixed in with the familiar scent of her shampoo he had smelled on her before in passing. Her skin was bare, except for the very silky cloth covering her torso, leaving her arms and most of her legs bare.

She made no attempt to stop her teeth from shaking. Sitting up to yank a blanket down to cover them, she shivered. "You won't come up there, so I'm coming down here."

When she attempted to cover him with the blanket, he jumped up. Standing, he muttered about stubborn females, yanked the blanket back onto the bed, and pulled her up, trying to ignore how amazing she looked standing in front of him. "You're not sleeping on the floor. Get back into the bed."

"No," she said, hands on her hips, stubbornly. Grabbing the blanket back, she wrapped it around her shivering body.

Rolling his eyes in back of his head, he sent a prayer upwards. _And what did I do to deserve this? What?_ he thought. Pushing her a little off balance, he scooped her up and tossed her lightly back onto the bed. Instantly, she sat up, lunged back off the bed, and sat down on the floor.

"Jen, seriously, I am not going to do this all night."

She shrugged. "Then go to sleep."

He stood there for a second. He knew this would be laughable, maybe looking back upon it weeks later, but right now, he wanted to throttle her.

Sighing, he picked up her again, threw her on the bed, and then climbed in after her. "God, you're seriously more stubborn than my sister." They straightened out the covers. Evan tried his best to stay as far away from her as possible.

"Sounds like we would get along great," she said, burrowing under the covers on her side of the bed. "See, that wasn't so hard. Now you'll be nice and toasty."

He couldn't hold in the laughter. "Toasty?" he laughed. "Yeah, this definitely needs to to stay out of any report."


	5. Chapter 5

Despite the distance they started apart on the bed, Evan woke up on his back in the middle of the bed. He looked down to see Jennifer's head cradled onto his shoulder and arm tightly wrapped around his torso. She was laying on her side, snug against him. His arm was wrapped under her body, holding her close to him. He froze. Trying to dislodge himself from her, the movement woke her up. He watched her try to figure out what was going on, until finally it sank in and she bolted up into a sitting position.

Jennifer hoped he was still sleeping. Sneaking a look over her shoulder, she quickly looked away. _Of course he's up. Why would my luck prove otherwise?_

Evan was having problems thinking. Her back was completely bare except for the thin spaghetti straps holding up the nightgown. Shivering from the cold, she yanked the covers back over her shoulders, scooted away from him, and buried herself under the covers again while laying on her back. Shutting her eyes, she pretended that she didn't wake up clinging to the man next to her.

Despite his shock of waking up so close to her, he couldn't help holding back from teasing her. "Sleep well, doc?"

Mortified, she pulled the covers over her head. She loved how he conveniently developed this quirky personality now of all times. So much for the serious, stoic major. Muttering under her breath, he smiled. "Mind if I get dressed first? Then I'll get Ronon to stay here while I hunt down some more wood for today and later on. Figure I'll need it soon, now that I lost half the covers to you."

Surprising him, she stuck out her tongue. "Go. I'll stay here. It's warm."

He quickly dressed, pulling on a long sleeved black shirt that was snug against his torso. Jumping behind the screen, he pulled off the shorts and replaced them with his standard green khaki's. Yanking on socks and shoes, he saw that she hadn't budged from the bed.

Opening the door to their room, he shut it behind him and knocked on the one across the hall from him. Ronon answered the door, with Sheppard close behind.

"Hey," he greeted them. "Ronon, can you watch her for a second while I grab some wood?"

He grunted and began walking across the hall. Sheppard stopped him. "I'll do it. I got to talk to the doc anyways."

Evan stopped in his tracks. Before thinking about it, he glared at the man. "About what?"

Sheppard, shocked at the man's tone, narrowed his eyes back at Lorne. "That's between the doc and I. Now go get your wood, major."

Deliberately, he strood across the hall and looked back at the major, almost wanting him to say something back. It didn't look like he was, but then, Evan started back, blocking the door.

"She's still sleeping. And half dressed," Evan said in a low voice, almost wincing how that statement sounded.

It took everything John had in him not to burst out laughing. Did this sound like he think it sounded? Keeping a straight face, Sheppard walked slowly to him, never allowing his steely eyes to leave Evan's.

"What does that exactly mean, major?"

Evan stood his ground, grating his teeth. "Like you said earlier. That's between the doc and I. So how about you get Ronon, or better yet Teyla, to go in there while we settle this downstairs?"

Ronon, clearly enjoying the show, beckoned Teyla to come to the door. Her eyes widened when she saw the two men, nose to nose, about to come to blows. Running into the hallway, she pushed herself between them.

"Colonel. Major," she said, with a warning tone. "What is going on?"

Both of them clamped their lips closed, glaring at one another. Neither budged an inch. Finally, Ronon spoke up.

"Lorne needs more wood for the room. He wants one of us, but not Sheppard, to watch her. That's all I know."

Exasperated, Teyla spun around. "Ronon, go in there and watch Dr. Keller. Major Lorne," she said, firmly moving him away from Sheppard, "go get your wood. And you," she stared pointedly at John. "Come with me." She yanked him back as well, shoving him into the room.

Amused, Ronon knocked and entered their room. Lorne, clearly still angry, stomped down to the first floor.

In the meantime, Teyla slammed the door and whirled on the colonel.

"John," she hissed, not believing his behavior. "What exactly was that all about?"

Shocking her, he burst out laughing and fell back onto one of the beds, hands behind his head. Crossing his ankles, he grinned.

"Just giving the major a push in the right direction."

Understanding dawned on Teyla. "You mean you did all of that she he would be jealous? And what if Jennifer doesn't want the same thing?"

"Oh, she does. Doc admitted it to me before this all went down. If someone doesn't make a move, they'll be poking each other in their rocking chairs at Shady Pines retirement center by the time they get around to it."

"Rocking chairs?" She asked, confused. "Shady Pines?"

He laughed, forgetting for a moment she had never had the privilege of watching _The Golden Girls._ Sobering, glad he didn't admit he himself used to watch it late at night in front of someone from Earth, he got up.

"Relax, Teyla," he said. "They'll thank me in the end. And maybe name their first born after me."

Giving up, she sat on the chair, spine straight, still looking disapprovingly at him. "We'll see, colonel."

* * *

Despite the awkward start to the day, negotiations completed on Teyla and Ronon's end. In exchange for a continuing alliance with Atlantis as well as the coveted ZPM, the elders of the village also wanted more medical supplies and additional medical training. To them, it was little, but to the villagers, it was something they needed traded for something they would never use and found in an abandoned Ancient run down lab.

Keller saw more villagers throughout the day. Because she was so busy, she didn't notice the tension between the two men guarding her at all times.

At the end of the day, the inn owner, who was grateful to Jennifer for seeing his daughter who had been ill for days, invited them all to dinner downstairs in the private family dinning hall.

A girl from the village offered to do Jennifer's hair as a way of repaying her for healing her younger brother. Jennifer complied, not feeling like insulting her. Another woman, just about Jennifer's own age, had made a dress for her for a special occasion. She tried it on before the younger girl was due to her room, struggling to finish the buttons on the back of the dress. Emerging from behind the dressing screen, she looked at Evan in frustration.

"I need help," she complained, while both arms kept attempting at working the buttons.

Evan turned from the fire where he had been sitting, amazed at the transformation. The dress was green, matching her eyes, and although it wasn't perfectly in place yet due to Jennifer's attempts to button it, he could tell it flattered her slender figure. Standing to help, he steadied his nervous hands.

Trying to think of something to talk about while he did this, he stepped behind her while she lifted her hair.

"Tell me again why we agreed to go to this thing?" he asked. A man in town had given him dressier clothes to wear, complete with some sort of top coat that had him feeling like Thomas Jefferson.

She sighed. "It's their way of thanking me for what we've done here. Supposedly it's just supposed to be a few families coming downstairs." Jennifer shivered at the feeling of his warm hands working the buttons from halfway down her back to her neck. Once she felt him finish, she dropped her hair and tried to walk away.

"Hey," he said, gently grabbing her arm. For a moment, Jennifer thought he was going to say something personal. She saw it in his eyes, that he was struggling with words. Just as quickly, the serious military look returned. "Stay close. Don't let your guard down."

Rolling her eyes, she flopped into the seat in front of the mirror while he returned to the fire, checking his weapons. _You look nice, _she thought, _could have been one possible nice thing he could have said. _

A knock at the door sent Evan on guard, motioning her to stay while he answered it. Opening it slowly, he checked that it was just the young girl and opened the door to allow her into the room. He was polite but didn't engage in a conversation with the girl. As she walked to Jennifer, he noticed she had flowers tucked into her hands.

Roughly thirty minutes later, he finished his inventory and turned to see if Jennifer was ready. He starred in amazement. The girl had transformed Jennifer's hair in the short time. The front was pulled back, held loosely by a french braid running from one ear to the other. Several small flowers were placed along the braid, as well as into the back of her hair, which hung loose down her back.

"What do you think?" Jennifer asked, smiling at the girl.

The first thing Evan wanted to respond with was that she took his breath away. But that wasn't something he would dare say, even in front of the girl who assumed they were married.

"She did a good job," he answered impersonally. "Are you ready?"

Miffed at his flippant response, she kept it hidden and thanked the girl. Evan opened the door, motioning her to follow.

A little tired of the protectiveness, she felt irritated. "Seriously, do you always think something bad is going to happen? Like, when you're home, do you feel the need to shield your sister in the mall?"

He shot her back a look. Evan found himself in a foul mood, mostly from the fact that she looked stunning and he couldn't do anything about it. "No. But if I was with you, in a mall, I would probably order full body armor for you, along for myself, and a fully loaded automatic. Knowing your luck, we would run into a random shooter or even better, someone trying to kidnap you to get you to reveal a secret bio hazard illness or something from Pegasus."

Stopping, she delicately pressed her lips together. "Thought about that much, major?" She asked, irritating him with the use of his title.

"Yes, _doctor,_ that's exactly what I do in my spare time. Fantasize about possible situations to save you from."

Evan didn't know what was happening to him. He never cracked during a mission. But he felt ready to burst from being this close to her and not able to act on what he was feeling about her. Turning to take her arm to help her down the stairs, he lowered his voice as he heard people below him. "Next time, how about we get Sheppard to play this part? It's obvious you'd have more fun with him."

Shocked, she hissed, "What are you talking about?" It was too late for him to reply. They pasted on smiles as several families from the village greeted them. They were shown to their table, both happy to see their team already there. John shot Evan a curious warning glance based on what he had seen from them as they came down the stairs. Ignoring the colonel's looks, Evan pulled out Jennifer's chair and sat down beside her, scanning the room for himself.

The meal was served immediately. They eat in silence, only occasionally talking with Ronon, Teyla, or Sheppard. Their teammates could feel the tension between them. During dessert, Teyla leaned over and whispered into Jennifer's ear. "Is everything alright?"

Feeling miserable, she lied and assured Teyla that they were both tired from the long day. She heard John asking Ronon pretty much the same thing next to her. Not hearing his response, she thought back to their conversation on the stairs.

"Can I have everyone's attention?" The inn owner called out. "We're going to clear the tables now and enjoy some music and dancing." Turning toward the Atlantians, he smiled at them. "I know you may not know the dances we do, but we invite you all to join in. We can teach you."

Muttering under his breath, Evan looked up at the ceiling as if dancing with her would be the last thing he wanted to do. Jennifer felt her anger surge up.

"Seriously, what is your problem?" She hissed over at him as they both got up to join the others on the floor. He looked around, seeing how others were holding their partners, and followed suit.

"I don't like to dance," he said with a closed expression.

They followed the direction of others until they got down the gist of the slow dancing. Seeing no one around her, she angled her mouth towards his ear. "Then what was that about on the stairs?"

Lorne tensed, gripping her hand more solidly in his own. "The stuff about Sheppard? Come on, doc, I see the way you act around him. He would have been perfect for this."

She grew angrier. "Well, I'm sorry to have put you through all of this. Next time when Sheppard asks me who I want to pose as a love interest on a mission, I'll be sure and NOT mention your name. It's obvious how bored you are around me and how difficult it is to pretend to be attracted to me."

His head whipped around, forcing her eyes to meet his. "What do you mean, you picked me?"

Redness flooded her face. "Never mind." She turned, detaching herself from his grip and headed towards their table. She only got a few feet until he spun her around, looking intensely at her.

"Why? Why did you pick me?" He asked, not noticing people laughing around them and dancing in merriment.

Ashamed and embarrassed, she struggled for an answer. "Because I'm an idiot."

He wouldn't leave it at that. "And John? You have no feelings towards him?"

Rolling her eyes, she shook her head. "No. Why would I? And besides the fact that he is head over heals in love with Teyla."

"Teyla?" Evan said loudly, causing the Athosian to glance their way. Shaking his head the Athosian, he turned back to Jennifer. Suddenly, he felt the need to get her out of the room.

But Jennifer wasn't budging. In fact, she was furious. "Seriously, I've never met anyone so focused on their job that they notice absolutely NOTHING going on around them."

He snapped. Everything faded around them to him. His eyes narrowed and he threw caution into the wind. Ignoring her protests, he bent low and picked her up off her feet fireman style over his shoulder. He heard the giggles around them. As he began walking, he nodded thanks to the inn keeper, explaining his wife was tired. When he was almost out of the room, he literally ran into Sheppard, who was blocking the door.

Evan glared at the man. "Move, Sheppard."

Shocked and impressed at the rudeness of his second in command, who never spoke out of turn to him, decided to push him even further. "Where are you going with my CMO, major?"

Growling, he set his teeth together in irritation. "Not yours, _colonel," _he responded in a low voice so Jennifer couldn't hear from behind him. _"Mine."_

Sheppard grinned. "Well, major," he said just as low. "It's about time."

Moving aside, Sheppard waited until they passed until he let out a laugh. So there was a human underneath the calm exterior after all.

* * *

_OK, I've started but I'm struggling with the next chapter. It may be a few days until I post again. Sorry, I know, that's annoying on my part, but I'd rather think on it than just crank out something boring. Thanks for reading and the reviews!_


	6. Chapter 6

Once in their room, he shut the door and set her down. Furious, she straightened and blew the hair out of her face. She was livid.

"What in the world was that about?" she demanded, facing him.

He yanked the coat off him, revealing a loose cotton dress shirt underneath and threw it on the ground. Lifting his head to undo the top several buttons, he began to feel much better. Well, almost. Turning to bar the door, he turned to her. "We needed to talk."

"And we couldn't down there? What are people going to think? Do you know what that looked like, carrying me up here like a caveman?"

His head was spinning from everything. "Why are you worried? We're suppose to be married. It looked exactly what it should look like."

Flouncing on the bed, she pulled off the dress boats someone had loaned her and laid back on her pillow. "So it was just for the show, right? Of course it was. Why would I think otherwise, Mr. I'm always on the job."

He stood up, almost smiling as she laid there with her arms folded over her chest, in a dress, with bare feet. Shocking her, he grabbed her hands and pulled her up to stand in front of him.

"No, it wasn't for the show," he said in a low voice, tugging her towards him. "So you think that because I'm always on guard, that I don't notice things like, oh, maybe how beautiful you look in that dress? Or how amazing your hair looks up like that?"

Her eyes widened when he bent his head towards her. He trailed his lips against her neck, continuing. "Maybe I also don't notice how incredibly caring you are to perfect strangers when you helped them today. Or the lollipops you give to the kids after their shots," he cupped her face and ran his hands through her hair. "Or that I can't focus barely on this mission at all because I'm so close to you."

He stopped talking to look again in her eyes. "See, I had this plan. Stay distant from you on our missions together or back at the city and I could ignore these feelings I began having for you."

She was struggling to keep up, to even stay standing for that matter. Gripping onto his forearms, Jennifer couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"But this mission kind of blew that plan out of the water," he continued, backing her until she felt the bed behind them. "If what you're saying is that you picked me, and not because I was just conveniently next on the list after those two downstairs, then it even breaks up my plan even more."

He studied her, waiting for her to speak. Jennifer finally felt her brain turn back on. "I didn't think you noticed me. And then Sheppard asked me who I wanted... who I trusted and who I was attracted to. I thought he may had told you all of that."

"No," Evan said, thinking back to all the events over the past couple days. All this time that he thought Sheppard was making a move towards her, he was really egging on Lorne to make a move. He'd have to thank him later on. After he punched him, of course.

He gathered her into his arms, pulling her against him, and dipped his head towards her. Their lips met, both of them sighing as if it was something they both had been waiting for but were too ignorant of each others feelings to admit it. He nibbled on her bottom lip, teasing her, then deepening the kiss. Her hands raked through his hair, over his jaw, and then down his back.

Evan couldn't get enough of her. They stood there what seemed like forever, completely lost in each other. He finally pulled back to study her. Looking down, he lips were tender from the kiss, eyes wide from the sudden halting of their kiss.

Taking her hands into his, he smiled. "As much as I want to do more of this," he said, bending to rain a few more kisses on her lips, he pulled back. "I don't want to rush this. I've learned, especially in all of this, that taking things slow makes everything more enjoyable." His eyes darkened. Evan bent to kiss her forehead, completely taken in by the alluring look in her eyes, and pulled her to him in another embrace. "And you're going to need to stop looking at me like that, or my plans again will go out the window."

Relieved he felt the same way, but disappointed he wasn't kissing her anymore, she sighed. "You of all people probably saw in my file that I'd had little experience in the dating department. So slow sounds the right speed for me," she smiled. "For us, I mean."

"How about we get some fresh air and go for a walk? I think it's safe to say if nothing has happened so far, then we may be able to scrape through this mission without any attempts on your life. Tereck seems to be behaving himself to the point where we've barely seen him. You can change into regular clothes and we'll tell Sheppard on the way out. Besides, you really have been working so much that you haven't had much time to relax here."

Agreeing, she ducked down to grab items from the duffel bag across the room to change.

"I'll wait for you outside the room," he said, considerately. "Take your time."

Grateful not to have to lug everything behind the curtain, she quickly took off the dress and replaced it with regular clothes. As she reached for her shoes, she felt a quick blast of colder air coming into the room. Turning to identify the source, she felt a hand cover her mouth. Trying to scream, the person tightened his hand around her mouth.

"Listen," he growled in her ear. "Make a sound and I'll kill him if he comes through that door. Be quiet, and he'll live. Your choice." Waiting for her to nod, he let her go. "Put on your shoes, now. And bring your bag if it has warmer clothes in it. We're taking a long walk." She bent to put them on and tie them. Even though she was scared, Jennifer focused on keeping calm and thinking ahead. Knowing Evan had a gun in his duffel, she chose to grab that one and pull it over her shoulder. Grabbing her hands, he bound them together tightly in front of her.

"Now follow me. And don't make any attempts to escape or you won't see him alive again."

Seeing where he came in, she couldn't believe her eyes. The floorboards next to the chair were up, revealing a secret tunnel. Thinking quickly, she yanked a flower out of her hair and placed it next to the board before descending the stairs behind him. The man didn't notice, and closed the door behind him. They walked for a few minutes before coming to a door that opened, revealing a passageway through a building in the village. Within minutes, they were out of the building, cloaked by nightfall, and headed towards the forest. She discarded another crushed flower from her hair, hoping Evan would somehow see it.

* * *

When ten minutes passed, Evan began to get antsy. _What could possibly take so long?_ By now, he knew her routines. She wasn't the type to take her time with clothing or even dab on makeup. She simply didn't need it, but in reality never bothered with it.

Knocking, he called out to her. When she didn't respond, he opened the door, looking around the room. She was gone.

Panic set in. Looking around, he didn't see any sign of a struggle. All the windows were inaccessible from outside. Finally, his eyes settled on a single flower he recognized she had in her hair tonight on the floor. Looking around, he saw for the first time a faint outline in the floor boards. Taking out his knife, he fumbled around until he was able to pry the board up, revealing a door with stairs.

He almost began to run after her right then and there. As common sense kicked in, he ran over to his radio, not even wanting to take the time to go downstairs.

"Sheppard, come in." Lorne said quickly.

A few seconds later, he heard his commanding officer's voice. "Evan, I didn't expect to hear any more from you tonight."

"She's gone. I stepped outside the room for a few minutes. There's a trap door in the floorboards. I'm going to see where it goes."

"Negative, major. Hold on until Ronon can go with you," Sheppard was already on the move, motioning for Ronon to go up. "Teyla and I will keep in contact through radio, asking around and see if we can figure out who's behind this."

Frustrated, but understanding Sheppard was right, he waited. Ronon was fast, flying up to the room. He was tracker and would be valuable in finding her as fast as possible. But it didn't stop his throat from closing up, his heart pounding, and his brain from coming up with possible scenarios and whatif's if they didn't find her soon. As soon as he entered, Lorne began to descend the stairs. He had grabbed flashlights, tossing one to Ronon, as well as several guns.

Ronon could tell Evan was scared. His normal calm demeanor was gone and replaced by a man frantic to find her.

Trying to calm him, he called out. "We've been through this twice before," he said, crawling through the same building Jennifer had been in minutes before. "We'll find her, Lorne."

Lorne barely heard him. His heard was racing, hoping to find a trail that would lead them to her. Flashlight down, he trailed back to a spot on the ground. A flower. The same kind from upstairs in the room. Almost smiling at her thinking, he pointed to Ronon. The man knelt before him, checking the ground.

"This way," Ronon said, headed towards to forest.

* * *

_It's a little shorter than usual, but there will be at least one or two more chapters coming up in a few days. Thanks for reading/reviewing! _


	7. Chapter 7

The man dragged Jennifer in a hurry through the forest. With her hands bound but feet free, she was limited to finding a way to get out of this.

Thinking back to the time where she was taken by the bola kai with Teyla, she remembered how scared and pretty much useless she had been to Teyla. She had allowed the fear to come over her and paralyze any thought or attempt she or Teyla could have taken to get away. Luckily, Sheppard's team had found them. The second time she felt for her life was when Kiryk, a runner, had kidnapped her while she had been separated from her team. Instead of being helpless, she fought back, first trying to run away from him and then secondly fighting a Wraith. In the end, she ended up helping a young girl whom Kiryk kidnapped her to help as well as safely deactivating the tracking device. And later on, stopping Ronon from killing Kiryk.

And now this. Even though she was scared, she was more angry than anything. Jennifer used that, forcing herself to stay on alert for any possibly way of escaping.

"You know," she called out, "I'm pretty sick of getting taken hostage all of the time. You may think you're the first to do this to me, but let me tell you..." she want on, stomping over tree roots and trying to keep her balance despite being bound as well as carrying a pack on her back, "This is the third dang time it's happened to me. It's getting old."

The man in front of her ignored her, continuing to pull her deeper into the forest.

"So tell me why I'm being dragged out here? I could be nice and cozy with a seriously hot man back there, whom, by the way, is going to be pretty ticked to find out I'm not there. You don't want to tick of a military man, especially this one," she waited for an answer, half expecting one. When she didn't get one, she didn't back off. "OK, how about I guess. You have a sick child and didn't think I would come on my own. Hmmm... OK, not that one. Guess number two," she paused, trying to think of another one. Her humor was making her less scared, more angry, and made her feel satisfied knowing she was at least annoying the man, whose shoulders began to tense up slightly. "You're a runner and want me to remove a tracking device. I guess my expertise on removing those has made me famous."

Still no reaction from the man.

"Don't tell me. You're the silent type. Great. So now I'm not only aggravated about adding to my unlucky streak, which, really sucks because I know people back home already had placed bets that something like this would happen... but now I'm bored. I get whiny when I'm bored. I learned from McKay and he's the king of whiny."

The man stopped, forcing her to run into him. He grabbed the front of her shirt, yanked her until she was close to his face, and clenched his teeth. "Shut your mouth. Right now. Or I kill you."

Her eyes flew wide open, frightened by the sudden movement. But then her anger surged through. She didn't know why she was acting like this, but she was sick of being pushed around. "You're bluffing. You could have killed me at any point tonight. So tell me where we're going."

He backed her into the tree, slamming her head and back into the trunk roughly. "You're right. I can't kill you," he said, taking out a knife and running it across her throat. The tip broke skin, just ever so slightly, but enough to make her cry out. "The deal is that I bring you in alive. But no one ever said the goods couldn't be damaged."

That got her attention.

"Shutting up, now," she said. Jennifer could feel the small trickle of blood running down her neck.

Determined not to lose the fight in her, she followed quietly this time but turned on her survival instincts. The entire time they had been walking, she had been attempting at loosening the ropes tied tightly around her wrists. She had made a little progress but still had a ways to go. Working the ropes even harder now, she winced as they cut roughly around her skin. No sooner than later, she felt the rope burn into torn skinned.

Trying to focus on anything but how much she hurt, Jennifer began thinking about Evan. To distract herself, she thought of all the possible things they could do when they were back on Atlantis. Top on the list was going on a day trip vacation... thinking to herself, she began planning for him to get permission to take a puddle jumper to the main land. She had heard there were beaches there, according to the botanists. A long day of sun bathing, a romantic picnic lunch, followed by some serious make out time was definitely something she'll be earning from this trip. And one gorgeous, shirtless, major to accompany her.

She wondered if he was already on their trail. Desperately hoping he was, she still was determined more than ever to not count on anything. If it was up to her, she was going to find a way out of this.

They had walked at least another half mile. She finally gave up trying to get out of the ropes and now felt the wetness of the blood from her attempt of getting out of them. Shivering, she came up with an idea.

"If it's not too much trouble," she called out, trying to keep a strong voice, "can we stop so I can put on a sweater? I'm really starting to get cold."

The man kept walking for a few paces and then stopped. "If it will make you walk faster, then why not? Tell me where it is in the bag. I'll get it."

She pretended to look frustrated. "I don't remember. Can you let me look? You'll need to untie me for a second anyways to get into the jacket."

He didn't look too happy, but complied. After the ropes were cut by his knife, he watched her like a hawk. She first propped the bag up as high as it would reach and undid the zipper in the pocket she knew Evan had kept a gun. Pulling it out, she set it on the ground so that the man couldn't see.

"Sorry, it must be in the other compartment," she muttered.

Opening the large zipper, hoping for a sweatshirt, she pulled it out. "Got it," she called out. Setting it down next to the gun, she zipped the compartment closed first before quickly tucking the gun into the pocket of the sweatshirt. Carefully pulling it over her head to make sure it didn't fall out, she pulled it down over her body.

"Alright, come on," he said roughly. "We're losing time. I don't get paid if we're late."

Wincing, she felt him tie the ropes even tighter this time.

"And this time, don't try to get out of these. Even if you do, you won't be able to outrun me. The old man is paying me a lot for you."

Intrigued at his slip of the tongue, she wondered who the old man was. He turned, quickly, and they began again. This time, the way he tied her put more room between them. The pace, however, picked up. Every time the rope between them went tight, he tugged her forward, forcing her to pick up speed.

Waiting until they had reached a clearing, she reached into her pocket, despite the bound hands, and was able to get a good grip on the gun. Jennifer knew how to use it, thanks to Sheppard and Ronon. It turned out she was a pretty accurate shot, too. But knowing how and be able to use it under pressure was another issue.

_Alright, Jen, it's either now or never. You don't do this right, you can really mess things up for yourself and possibly the others.  
_

"Stop walking." She called out.

Her kidnapper stopped, wondering why she would demand to stop now. Turning, he caught a glance at the gun. Reaching for his own knife, she called out to warn him but was too late. When he reached in and began to swing it towards her, she didn't even have time to think. Jennifer aimed and fired. The bullet sent him spinning, catching him in the shoulder just above his heart.

* * *

Not far way, Evan and Ronon both stopped when they heard the shot.

Evan was sure his heart had stopped.

"They don't have guns," Ronon said. "It must be the doc."

"But where did she get the-" Evan began, and it dawned on him. "She took my bag. She must have remembered there was a gun in there."

"This way," Ronon called, following the sound they had heard.

Running now, Evan just hoped it was Jennifer who had pulled the trigger.


	8. Chapter 8

_So I had a MILD heart attack after logging in last night to edit this and finding ALL of my documents gone. Luckily, it was just a fluke in the system and by this morning, everything was back. I thought I had lost this, and two chapters of another story I started yesterday! Yikes!_

_

* * *

  
_

Her captor did not move. Keeping her gun trained on him, she knew it was going to be bad. If he wasn't dead yet, the close proximity she had shot him from would leave little chance he would survive.

Jennifer walked towards him, spying the knife he had tried to throw her way and kicked it out of the way. Bending down, she turned his body over, examining the wound. It was several inches from the heart. The bullet had gone through his shoulder. She knew if the bleeding wasn't stopped soon, he could die.

Torn between working on him and finding her way back, she made her decision. Grabbing Evan's bag, she took a shirt and used the knife to rip it in two. Placing one behind his shoulder and one on top of the entrance wound, she found a heavy small sized rock and put it on top to keep pressure on it.

Knowing full well that he was taking her to someone, she knew she had to make her way back or face running into whomever wanted her. It was almost completely dark now. Hoping to find a flashlight in his pack, she found one at the bottom and began to make her way back.

"Going somewhere?" Tereck's father, Darius, stepped out of the trees, accompanied by two men.

Confused, Jennifer almost was grateful to be found, but then she saw Darius' eyes, full of anger. Cursing herself for putting the gun back into the bag, she tried backing away. One of the men leaped forward and dragged her over to the older man.

"You, my dear," he said in a hard tone, "have been nothing but a problem for me and my son. First, you humiliate him by refusing him, bringing back this man whom I find out is just posing to be your husband. And then, the villagers began singing your praises, nonstop chatting about the woman doctor who had healed them. Those people used to look to me for help and guidance. Now, they feel they have no need of a leader. Some are even asking if they can go back to your world and would leave our village."

He grabbed her shirt, fisting it in her hands, shaking her. "Do you know how soon this village would crumble, how vulnerable we would be if people started leaving and we had less to grow our food, offer their services in our military? Do you have any idea what you have done here?"

Disgusted with her, he threw Jennifer roughly to the ground. She cried out, hitting her shoulder with a sharp rock and grazing her face onto the rough ground. Dizzy, she tried to focus on how she could get to her bag for the gun. Spying the knife on the ground, she grabbed it and whirled around, standing in front of the three men.

They just laughed at her. "You are outnumbered, my dear. And my men have weapons. You can be assured that your life will be ending in the next few minutes. Put the knife down."

She was terrified, seeing their guns, similar to Ronons, trained on her. "Never. If I can even get one of you down, that will be better than nothing."

One of the men stepped forward, quickly disarmed her, and grabbed her from behind. She cried out when he flung the knife across the clearing. "We had a deal, Darius. You bring her to us, we dispose of her. But not before we get to enjoy her a little."

Darius nodded. "You can have your fun, but bring me the body afterward and you'll get your payment. Looks like you'll only have to split it two ways," he leaned over, verifying her captor was dead. "I'm surprised she was able to have the courage to do this much." He sent her one last look, smiled sinisterly, and left the two men and Jennifer in the clearing alone.

Struggling to get away, Jennifer kicked and screamed at the man holding her. Wishing she had a weapon within reach, she knew it was futile trying to fight him.

"Looks like we're going to have some fun," he leered at her. Raking his gaze over her body, he stepped back and let her go. "There's no where to run. We'll just catch you."

Shaking with fear, she felt sore everywhere. The urge to give up was there, but the anger pushed her through her weakness. Waiting for him to approach her again, she sprung into action, launching herself at the man with her fists.

It was then that Evan found her. Taking in the situation quickly, he pointed at Ronon to take the other man. Ripping Jennifer away from the man, he pushed her aside and slammed his fist into the man's face. Her assailant didn't expect him, but quickly stood up and charged Evan. Ready for the attack, Evan deflected the blows, eventually getting in several more hits to the man's jaw and finally twisting the man's wrist until it snapped.

Screaming, the man fell to the ground in agony. Seeing that Ronon had also taken care of the other man, he spun around to Jennifer. Expecting her to be alone, he was terrified to find her in the arms of a madman.

"You all are proving to be a bigger problem than I originally expected," Darius, who held Jennifer with a dagger to her side, yanked her further away from the men. When he heard the commotion on his way back to the village, he had circled back to find this. Jennifer was standing as still as she could, despite her fear, so the knife wouldn't graze her. Blood dripped down her temple from when he had thrown her down earlier. "She's going to die tonight."

"Let her go," Evan growled, wishing he wouldn't feel so helpless. Aiming his gun at the man, he tried to find an open shot.

Suddenly, Sheppard called out. "Darius, you're surrounded. You have three guns trained on you." Standing behind him several feet away, Sheppard kept his gun trained on him.

The added men made Darius spin around. With his back to Evan, the major used the opportunity to his advantage. Running full speed at the man, he grabbed the arm with the knife away from Jennifer. Seeing her stumble away, Evan turned back to see Darius furious and coming at him.

"Don't take a shot," Evan called out. Hearing Sheppard and Lorne both protest, Evan repeated himself and threw his gun down. "He's behind everything from tonight." Narrowing his eyes, he couldn't wait to tear apart the man for every cut, bruise, and memory she had from tonight. "He's mine. Stay back."

Unarmed, Lorne eyed the older man. Even though he had a knife, the man was clearly unskilled at combat. Darius wildly attempted to charge at Evan, but Evan proved to be quicker and more skilled. Determined to unarm the man, Evan went in, ducking, and grabbing the man's arm. He slipped at one point, sending the knife slicing down on his arm. Not noticing the pain, he wrestled the man until the knife fell to the ground. Never wanting more than to kill a man, Evan gritted his teeth and reigned in the anger. Sending the man face down onto the ground, he bent and held him roughly by the hair.

"You do not know how badly I want to snap your neck and watch the life drain out of your eyes," he whispered into the man's ear. "But I won't, because that will upset her, even after all that you've done." Not able to resist the temptation, Evan slammed the old man's face into the hard ground. Getting up, he saw Sheppard's angry gaze. He could tell his commanding officer was both angry and the risk he had taken and his own wish to see the man dead.

Not wanting to do anything else but see for himself that Jennifer was OK, he turned towards where she was standing next to Teyla. Finally crumpling, she let herself walk into his outstretched arms while the others stepped away to give them privacy. The events from the past few hours, from pulling a gun on someone and shooting for the first time in her life, to finally getting rescued, she felt drained and utterly exhausted. Nothing more could have comforted her than Evan's arms wrapped tightly around her.

Clutching on to her, Evan murmured in her ear, kissing her face and at the same time checking her over. He hissed at the red welts she had on her wrists and his breath caught when he saw the long wound at her neck. Seeing that it had stopped bleeding, he was relieved but wanted nothing else to get her back to Atlantis.

"Lorne, Atlantis just radioed me. We missed check in. They're sending a jumper for us right now. Let's make our way to the clearing so we can get her back," Sheppard called out. "How bad is she?"

Evan found himself struggling with a response. "Nothing serious, thank God." Lifting her into his arms, he followed the rest of them.

"Your arm? You're bleeding, major." Sheppard pointed out.

"It's fine," Lorne said, only caring about her.

Calming herself, Jennifer protested at him carrying her. "Ev, I can walk. I'm fine, I just got a little overwhelmed back there. Put me down."

"Negative, doc," Sheppard called over to her. "Consider it an order, Lorne. Can't have her passing out and doing more damage. Woolsey's already going to give me grief for this much." Sheppard passed the body of a man he didn't originally see, noticing the gun shot wound. Knowing full well neither Ronon nor Evan did it, he glanced up at Lorne. Sending a look down at the body, he sent him a pointed look at Jennifer.

"Fought back, yes she did," Sheppard murmured, proud of his CMO. Looking at her wrists, he could tell the doc kept her head and tried everything in her power to escape.

* * *

A week later, Jennifer found herself next to Evan, spread out on a large blanket, drinking in the sun. Sheppard had pulled some strings, asking Woolsey for some down time for the team after the last mission. Ronon chose to go off world and visit a few friends, leaving the rest of them giddy over spending the entire weekend on a planet that was pretty much paradise.

Evan, shirtless and wearing a pair of swimming trunks he had luckily packed in case they actually had a beach trip while on Atlantis, couldn't wipe the smile off his face. He was laying along side of Jennifer, propped up on his side, just staring at her. Unfortunately, she hadn't packed any swim clothes from Earth, so Teyla had come to her rescue and let her borrow an Athosian bathing outfit. And for that, Evan could have kissed the woman. Far more seductive than any Earth swimsuit he had ever seen, the outfit resembled a bikini on Earth but was made with extraordinary fabrics in the color of jewel tones. Because they had just come out of the water and were drying in the sun, the fabric clung to her body.

"Evan, are you still staring at me?" Jennifer said, face down and enjoying the feel of the sun on her back.

"Hmmm?" Evan asked, scooting closer to her, using his fingers to chase the water droplets on her back. Facinated with the way her skin was glowing in the sun, despite her pale complexion, he found himself unable to keep his hands off of her. "Do you need more suntan lotion? Because there's more here?"

"Ev, you put at least a quarter of the bottle already on me. You know," she said, rolling over and propping on her side, putting space in between them, "Sheppard and Teyla will be due back any minute. They just went on a short walk."

Hungrily looking at her, Evan just smiled even more. Jennifer melted in his gaze, unable to take her own eyes off the man who was a foot away from herself. The man looked good without a shirt. Sinfully good. Hours he must have spent working out did credit to his finely toned body. Blushing, she looked back at his eyes.

"Dr. Keller," he teased, closing in on her, "are you staring at me?" He gently layed her onto her back, propping up on an elbow and cradled her face with his palm. Trailing his fingers over her jaw, he didn't wait for a response, lowering his face to brush his lips with hers. Hearing her sigh of pleasure, he deepened the kiss.

"Hey, get a room," they heard Sheppard say as they approached the couple. "Or, er... a tent."

Lorne rolled off Jennifer as they both sat up.

"I see you guys already set your tent up," Sheppard said, eying it. "I better start setting both of ours up before it gets to be late."

Lorne snickered, getting a curious glance from Jennifer. He watched the colonel set up a tent a little further down the beach with Teyla. When Teyla stayed over there to put her stuff in it, John walked back looking around for the third tent. Not finding it, he walked over to Lorne.

"Anyone see the other tent? I got Teyla's set up, but can't find the last one."

Evan looked at him innocently. "No, I don't think it got packed." Actually, it got shoved to the side in the gate room when Sheppard wasn't looking. "I guess we only have two. You want the girls to share one and we can take the other?"

Teyla, who had walked over and heard the conversation, shook her head. "Absolutely not. John and I can share. You both deserve some time with one another. There's plenty of room in that one."

Sheppard, on the other hand, looked a little apprehensive about the new sleeping arrangements.

"Is that OK with you, colonel?" Lorne asked, trying to keep in his laughter.

Eyes narrowing, John looked at his second in command. "Why do I think that you know more than you let on?"

Looking over at Jennifer and Teyla talking, Evan dropped his voice. "Do you mean what you pulled on the last mission and beforehand with Jen and I? Or how you have a thing for a certain Athosian? Or," Evan grinned devilishly, "the location of your third tent? And sleeping bag."

Sheppard just stared at the man. Knowing he had been had, he stayed silent and he walked back over towards Teyla. Halfway there, he stopped and turned. "Wait a second, did you say third bag?"

Snickering, Evan brushed off sand from his arm. "Don't worry, they're big enough. Jen and I already tried ours out."

Sinking down in the sand next to Teyla, he just rubbed his forehead, not hiding the frustration from his face. Evan glanced over to see if Teyla had heard the exchange, but she seemed to be rubbing her shoulder and grimacing.

"What's wrong, Teyla?" Jennifer asked concerned.

"Nothing," she said, rolling her neck and shoulder. "I must have overexerted myself yesterday when John and I were practicing in the sparring room."

The doctor, knowing exactly what Evan was up to, grinned. "You know," she said, calling over to Sheppard. "I had the same problem a week ago. John was kind enough to give me the most incredible massage." She ducked her head and turned to Evan, who was almost rolling with laughter. "Lay down and the colonel can see if he can do the same for you."

Sheppard's jaw just dropped.

"John, would you mind?" Teyla said, rolling onto her stomach, dressed in her own bathing suit. Neither Jennifer or Lorne missed the colonels eyes raking over her body and then glaring at them. Sighing, the man looked apprehensive to touch her, then finally put a hesitant hand on her shoulder and began gently rubbing in the spot she had pointed out.

"Hey, Jen, how about we take our own walk," Evan said, pulling her to her feet. "There's a spot around the corner that I noticed will be perfect to watch the sun set." Giggling, Jen jumped up next to him, leaving John and Teyla on their own. Halfway to the spot, Evan grabbed Jennifer and lifted her off her feet. Spinning her in his arms, he kissed her soundly, completely happy with everything that had transpired over the last few days.

"So," he said, setting her down. "How bad do you think I'm going to have to pay for all that back there?"

She laughed. "It could go either way. But he deserves all the payback from what he put us through."

Agreeing, he took her hand in his own. Knowing full well a relationship on Atlantis, in both of their lines of work, would be a challenge, he couldn't have wanted anything different. Spinning her to his body, he stopped for a moment and planted a soft kiss on her lips.

"Dr. Jennifer Keller, I believe I'm falling in love with you."

Softening, she ran her hands down his arms. "Well, you need to catch up, because I'm totally in love with you, Major Lorne."

They stood there as the sun went down with their arms wrapped around each other.

* * *

_Thanks for the reviews! I had fun writing this, but it was hard to end.  
_


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